Welcome to the homepage for the Regional ITS Architecture for Central Massachusetts. The Commonwealth, through the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT), Office of Transportation Planning, has developed this architecture in cooperation with agencies and organizations involved in transportation throughout the region.

This architecture serves a framework for transportation systems integration in the Central Massachusetts area. For the architecture development process, "Central Massachusetts" was defined as the Central Massachusetts and Montachusett MPO planning areas. For an explanation of the Architecture Development Process, click here. For a Summary of Changes made to the architectures in 2010, click here. Further information, including an Executive Summary, is available in the Project Documents section of this website.

This Regional ITS Architecture identifies the existing and planned ITS components in the region and the interfaces among them. Collectively, these components and interfaces define a framework for planning and deployment of ITS in the region. This architecture has a time horizon of up to fifteen years, with particular focus on those systems and interfaces that are likely to be implemented in the next ten years. Components in the architecture are classified as either "existing" or "planned." Components classified as "existing" are those whose interface design is complete, regardless of whether the actual element or interface is implemented. Components classified as "planned" are those whose interfaces have not yet been designed.

This architecture is a valuable tool for those who plan, design, implement, and operate intelligent transportation systems. Moreover, it provides the basis for satisfying federal architecture consistency requirements for ITS projects. It is important to recognize, however, that an ITS project, like any other transportation project, is developed within the region's existing transportation planning process. As such, ITS project proponents must still work with their regional planning partners and follow the established regional planning process in developing their ITS project.

While the architecture has relevance throughout the project development process, this website focuses on the initial review for architecture consistency in the early stages of the process. The following links provide background and guidance on using the website for this purpose:

• Navigating the website
  
  
• Regulatory requirements
  
  
• Is your project an ITS project?
  
  
• Using this site to conduct your initial review